Three weeks after her initial plan to impose gender quotas on company boards met with strong opposition, EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding unveiled a new proposal. But this time it was criticised for being too weak.
The aim of Reding's proposed directive, released yesterday (14 November), is to increase the gender diversity of corporate boards throughout the EU by setting a minimum objective of 40% female board members by 2020.
"This is a historical day for gender balance and equality," Reding said at a joint press conference with Olli Rehn, the commissioner responsible for economic ...

Legal questionsprompt re-think of controversial scheme.
Viviane Reding, the European commissioner for justice, fundamental rights and citizenship, was forced to shelve a controversial proposal for legally binding quotas for the proportion of women on company boards on Tuesday (23 October), amid rancour and division with the European Commission.
The plan, which had also attracted significant opposition from member states, was dropped after a two-hour meeting of commissioners in Strasbourg.
Commission sources played down disharmony within the Commission, and yesterday (24 October) denied ...

Viviane Reding has not won the war but she is about to win a battle fought in the European Commission over her controversial project for mandatory quotas of 40% of women on the executive boards of listed companies in the EU by 2020 (2018 for big public enterprises). The project will only concern non-executive members, ie those who supervise the executive boards but do not make decisions on a daily basis. For non-executive members, the average of women is 15% in the EU.
According to our sources, the justice commissioner’s draft directive looks set to be discussed by the College of ...

New EU Consumer Rights: no more rip-offs when shopping onlineThe new EU Consumer Rights Directive has entered into force today, reinforcing the rights of more than 507 million consumers across Europe. These new measures harmonise the national consumer rules in several important areas and allow consumers to rely on the same rights, no matter where they shop in the EU. It also means simpler, more predictable rules for traders, who will now have more incentives to expand their business across borders. To make sure these new rules are applied in a uniform manner across the EU, the Commission is also publishing a guidance document for national authorities.

"Justice past, justice present and justice future" – Vice-President Reding sends three messages to the June European CouncilAhead of the upcoming European Council meeting on 26 and 27 June which – amongst other things – is set to agree on the future strategic priorities in the area of justice, Vice-President Viviane Reding outlined the European Commission's contribution to the broader reflection and her personal vision on the future EU justice policy: "My call to national leaders at the European Council: Don't just discuss 'people' (and the jobs they should get) but also focus on policies for people. By 2020, a true European Area of Justice should exist. Citizens and businesses deserve nothing less."